Arkansas Senate Fails to Pass Good Bill Banning Marijuana-Smoking

Legislature, Marijuana,

This afternoon a good bill that prohibits “medical marijuana” users from smoking marijuana failed to clear the Arkansas Senate for the second time since last week.

The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment currently lets practically anyone qualify to smoke marijuana. Even children are allowed to smoke it.

Smoking is a recreational activity that is almost universally recognized as unhealthy.

That’s why S.B. 357 by Sen. Jason Rapert (R-Conway) and Rep. Robin Lundstrum (R-Elm Springs) prohibits marijuana smoking; other forms of medical marijuana use—such as marijuana oils, tinctures, and vaporizers—would remain legal, but not smoking.

This afternoon S.B. 357 failed to pass the Arkansas Senate. The bill needed twenty-four votes to pass; it received only eleven.

Here are the senators who voted for S.B. 357:

  • Sen. Cecile Bledsoe (R-Rogers)
  • Sen. Ron Caldwell (R-Wynne)
  • Sen. Linda Collins-Smith (R-Pocahontas)
  • Sen. John Cooper (R-Jonesboro)
  • Sen. Bart Hester (R-Cave Springs)
  • Sen. Missy Irvin (R-Mountain View)
  • Sen. Jason Rapert (R-Conway)
  • Sen. David Sanders (R-Little Rock)
  • Sen. Greg Standridge (R-Russellville)
  • Sen. Gary Stubblefield (R-Branch)
  • Sen. Eddie Joe Williams (R-Cabot)

Here are the senators who voted against S.B. 357:

  • Sen. Will Bond (D-Little Rock)
  • Sen. Linda Chesterfield (D-Little Rock)
  • Sen. Alan Clark (R-Lonsdale)
  • Sen. Joyce Elliot (D-Little Rock)
  • Sen. Jake Files (R-Fort Smith)
  • Sen. Trent Garner (R-El Dorado)
  • Sen. Jim Hendren (R-Gravette)
  • Sen. Jimmy Hickey (R-Texarkana)
  • Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson (R-Little Rock)
  • Sen. Keith Ingram (D-West Memphis)
  • Sen. Blake Johnson (R-Corning)
  • Sen. Uvalde Lindsey (D-Fayetteville)
  • Sen. Bruce Maloch (D-Magnolia)
  • Sen. Terry Rice (R-Waldron)
  • Sen. David Wallace (R-Leachville)

Here are the senators who did not vote on S.B. 357:

  • Sen. Eddie Cheatham (D-Crossett)
  • Sen. Lance Eads (R-Springdale)
  • Sen. Jane English (R-North Little Rock)
  • Sen. Scott Flippo (R-Bull Shoals)
  • Sen. Stephanie Flowers (D-Pine Bluff)
  • Sen. Bill Sample (R-Hot Springs)
  • Sen. Larry Teague (D-Nashville)

Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R-Beebe) voted “Present” on the bill instead of voting for or against it.

Sen. Bryan King (R-Green Forest) was not able to vote due to an excused absence from the Arkansas Senate.

The Arkansas Senate was flooded with phone calls from people all over Arkansas who support this good bill. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette chastised the legislature over the weekend for failing to pass a commonsense regulation like S.B. 357 to ban marijuana-smoking. The fact that the Arkansas Senate failed to pass S.B. 357 today shows that senators are out of touch with Arkansans.

Unfortunately, the Arkansas Senate did not expunge the vote that was cast today. That means it is highly unlikely Sen. Rapert will be able to bring S.B. 357 back up for a third vote.

However, there is legislation related to marijuana-smoking up for consideration in the Arkansas House of Representatives. We plan to work with lawmakers to help those good bills move forward. We will have more information about that legislation in the coming days.

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Lottery Gave 16 Cents on the Dollar to Scholarships in February

Arkansas Lottery

This afternoon the Arkansas Lottery posted its financial report for the month of February.

According to the report, the Arkansas Lottery grossed nearly $41.2 million, but gave less than $6.7 million to scholarships–about 16 cents of every dollar it made.

A new bill filed last week by Sen. Joyce Elliott (D-Little Rock) would require the Lottery to set aside at least 25% of its gross revenue for scholarships; under that bill, the Arkansas Lottery would have given nearly $10.3 million to scholarships in February.

Unfortunately, the Arkansas Lottery continues to budget a paltry amount of money for scholarships each month. Below is a breakdown of the numbers for Fiscal Year 2017.

Month Gross Lottery Revenue Paid to Scholarships % Gross Revenue
July $38,237,293.92 $8,714,386.39 22.8%
August 35,091,022.09 5,498,714.86 15.7%
September 33,113,391.64 5,773,076.42 17.4%
October 34,061,993.14 5,165,040.54 15.2%
November 37,042,079.72 6,570,979.51 17.7%
December 35,352,159.35 4,596,532.22 13.0%
January, 2017 37,062,291.39 7,947,546.21 21.4%
February 41,176,854.60 6,698,099.62 16.3%
Total $291,137,085.85 $50,964,375.77 17.5%

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Resolution Filed Recognizing Bible as State Book

Legislature

Rep. Dwight Tosh (R-Jonesboro) has filed a resolution recommending the Bible be recognized as Arkansas’ State Book.

Arkansas has a state bird; a state flower; a state gem; a state instrument; and we even have a state butterfly. There’s no reason we should not have a state book, and what better book is there than the Bible?

H.R. 1047 supports recognition of the Bible as Arkansas’ state book. The Arkansas House of Representatives could vote on this resolution this afternoon.

You can ask your state rep to support H.R. 1047 by calling 501-682-6211.

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